Movable roof



D. S. MILLER MOVABLE ROOF Sept. 9, 1969 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 19, 1968 INVENTOR. DAVID S. MILLER ATTORNEYS D. s. MILLER MOVABLE ROOF Sept. 9, 1969 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 19, 1968 FIG. 4

FlG 5 INVENTOR. DAVID S. MILLER ATTORNEYS Sept. 9, 1969 Filed Jan. 19, 1968 D. S. MILLER MOVABLE ROOF 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 I32 I40 0 1 {I 0 0 0 0 0 0 I 0 Q I "'1 I 1; 0 I 1 i0 0 o u 15 0 0 0 I l I I l MM II4 I --I36 438 i i v LIMIT SIQJITCHES 34 I I22 MOTOR l T l J r50 '52 IIO V AC.

INVENTOR.

DAVID S. MILLER BY United States Patent 3,465,483 MOVABLE ROOF David S. Miller, Daly City, Calif., assignor to Rollamatic Roofs, Incorporated, San Francisco, Calif., a corporation of California Filed Jan. 19, 1968, Ser. No. 699,201 Int. Cl. E04]: 7/16 US. Cl. 52--72 3 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A movable roof or skylight for covering and sealing a roof opening in the closed position and movable to an open position by its own power, includes a frame comprised of hollow, thin-walled members connected at their ends that support and cover wheels which ride in tracks fixed to opposite sides of the roof opening, and mounted within one hollow frame member is a motor-drive unit connected to one pair of driving wheels. The frame members include means for retaining and sealing a plurality of cover panels. A sealing member attached to the outside edge of each track member maintains a seal for preventing an influx of rain when the movable roof is closed. The movement of the roof to the full open, closed or any intermediate position is controllable by a control switch and a single limit switch.

This invention relates to improvements in movable and remotely controllable roof sections and skylights.

Movable roof or skylight devices heretofore devised were heavy, cumbersome and thus diflicult and expensive to construct and to install. Moreover, they had a cluttered appearance which usually was not compatible with the surrounding building structure. Still another problem with such movable roof devices prior to the present invention was that their operating mechanism was complicated and difficult to service. Previous movable roof designs required the operating mechanism to be mounted externally and thus exposed and unprotected from the weather. A general object of the present invention is to overcome the aforesaid problems, and more specific objects are to provide a movable roof construction that is relatively lightweight, yet strong and durable; that has a pleasing appearance externally which is compatible with various forms of architecture; that is easy to assemble and install; and that provides complete protection for the operating mechanism.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a movable roof section having a construction that effectively seals the roof opening from wind and rain when in the closed position, and yet in no way interferes with the moving operation of the roof.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a movable roof device that can be manufactured at relatively low cost, can be easily preassembled and tested at the factory and then can be knocked down for shipment to the job site.

Another object of my invention is to provide a movable roof device that is particularly adapted for ease of maintenance and repair. The present invention accomplishes the aforesaid objectives by a movable roof device utilizing a hollow beam frame construction. Within portions of this frame are contained the drive motor, its gearing and the wheels for the device. The frame construction is relatively lightweight and yet affords a high degree of strength and rigidity and is adaptable to support and accommodate a wide variety of cover materials such as panel sections that extend across the frame. The frame members are constructed in a unique manner from "ice sheet metal which provides minimum weight with high rigidity, and they are easily assembled at the job site.

Other objects, advantages and features of my invention will become apparent from the following detailed description presented in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a view in perspective of a movable roof device embodying the principles of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary plan view of a reduced scale of my roof device;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary view in elevation of one end of the movable roof device of FIG. 1, a portion of the frame and a side plate thereof being removed to show the driving mechanism;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged view in elevation and in section taken along line 4-4 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged view in elevation and in section taken along line 55 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a wiring diagram for the drive system of the roof sections shown in FIGS. 1-5.

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary exploded view in perspective showing one corner of the movable roof frame;

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary view in perspective showing the roof frame of FIG. 7 when joined together.

With reference to the drawing, FIG. 1 shows a movable roof or skylight device 10 embodying the principles of my invention which in a typical installation covers an opening 12 in a roof 14 in the closed position and is movable under its own power to an open position exposing all or a portion of the opening. As shown, the roof opening is preferably surrounded by an inner frame 16 comprised of parallel spaced apart side members 18 and end members 19 which are secured to the roof surface. Attached to the frame side members are a pair of guide tracks 20 for supporting the movable roof section.

The roof section itself is comprised of a rectangular frame 22 on which are mounted at least four wheels 24 that are shaped and sized in cross section to ride in the tracks 20. This frame is formed from side and end sections 26 and 28 which are connected together at their ends. All of these side and end frame sections are hollow and. are preferably fabricated from sheet metal material.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, each side and end frame section is comprised of a pair of inner and outer right angle members 30 and 32 which are connected together to form a hollow, box type beam. Each right angle member may be formed from sheet metal of the appropriate thickness which can vary depending on the size of the roof device. On the inner angle member 30 of each beam section both of its legs are provided with a narrow flange 34 which projects at a right angle to its respective main leg. These narrow flanges thus lie flush to the legs of the other adjoining right angle member 32 of the beam section and can be attached the'reo along the length of the beam by suitable fastener means such as spot welds, rivets or screws, as indicated by the numeral 36. Thus, to form each frame member only one longitudinal break or bend is required in the outer angle member 32 and three such longitudinal breaks or right angle bends are made on the inner angle member 30. The two angle members are then placed together and fastened along the flanges 34.

At the corners of the frame 22 the side sections and end sections 26 and 28 are connected in a manner that enables them to be easily disassembled for shipment and yet which provides a firm leakproof joint at each corner when the frame is assembled. As shown in FIG. 7, a portion of the inside wall at the ends of all the frame sections is removed, leaving an opening 37 in each end of the side frame sections and similar openings 37a in the inside wall at the ends of the end frame sections, The Width of these openings is equal to the width of the frame sections. A vertical flange 38 is bent outwardly from the edge of each opening 37a. When the frame sections are joined together the end portions of the top and bottom sides of the end frame sections are deflected toward each other slightly so as to slide inside the similar top and bottom end portions of the side frame sections. These overlapped end portions are now fastened together in a suitable manner, such as by screws 39. As the end and side sections come together the flanges 38 bear against the inner wall of the side sections and are similarly fastened by screws 39a or the like. An angle piece 40 is also attached by screws to the corner junction of the outer side walls at the side and end frame sections to seal and reinforce the corner connection.

To help support the guide tracks for the movable roof wheels, a pair of protective sheet metal plates 41 are preferably fixed to the frame members 18 on both sides of the roof opening 12. Both of these plates are generally Z-shaped, having an upturned flange 42 along an inner edge and a downwardly turned flange 44 along its outer edge that retains a corner fillet strip member 46 connected to the roof. Each track rests on and is spaced generally centrally between the inner and outer flanges of a plate 41 and is fixed thereto by some suitable means such as spot welding, as indicated by the numeral 48. In some instances, I may use conventional fasteners such as screws which extend through both the track 20 and its plate 41 and into the roof frame member 18 below.

As shown in FIG. 4, the tracks 30 are generally channel-shaped with a central web that lies flush on the plate and a pair of divergent side flanges 50 which extend upwardly from the sides thereof. Extending outwardly from the upper edge of the outermost side flange is a horizontal flange 52 to which is attached a flexible side sealing member 54 that prevents any influx of water at the sides of the movable roof in its closed position, This sealing member which may be a rubber-like strip extends upwardly and outwardly along the outer side of each track member at an angle to the horizontal flange 52 so that its edge 56 remains just below the bottom side of the side frame section and inside of the frame flange 34. An angle member 58 is utilized to retain the side sealing member 54 on the flange 52 and has an upwardly and outwardly extending portion 60 that holds the sealing member in the aforesaid position. A side angle member 62 is fixed by its upright flange to the lower narrow edge flange 34 of each side beam section, and its horizontal flange 64 extends inwardly and just above the protective plate 40 with just enough clearance to prevent any engagement of these members that would interfere with the free movement of the roof section. Thus, as seen from the foregoing, the sealing member 54 together with the side angle member provides an all-weather seal which prevents Wind and rain from entering the sides of the closed roof section.

In FIG. 5, the provisions for sealing the ends of the roof section in the closed position are shown in detail. Attached to each end frame member 19 is a metal fillet strip 68 and along the upper edge thereof is a clamping strip 70 for retaining a flexible sealing member 72. The latter extends well above the lower edge flange 34 of the end frame section but just below its bottom side. Thus, when the roof section is closed the sealing member 72 overlaps the edge flange on the outside of the end beam section, and it is easily deflected as the roof section moves to an open position.

The wheels 24 for the roof section are housed within and are supported by the side frame sections. Near one end of the movable roof frame 22, one pair of front driving wheels are fixed to a rotatable axle 74 which is journaled at opposite ends in a pair of bearings 76 of any suitable type which are fixed to the bottom wall of each side frame section. The rear wheels are also housed within a side frame section but each is preferably supported on a single axle 78 which is similarly journaled in a pair of bearings fixed to the bottom wall of its side frame section, Appropriate openings are provided in the side beams which allow the wheels to extend downwardly to engage the tracks. Preferably, all of the wheels have an outer peripheral portion of some long-lasting, non-metallic material that will grip the track members with maximum traction and yet run on them with a minimum of noise. The tread width of each wheel is preferably slightly wider than the central web of the track member so that the wheels are essentially gripped by its diverging side flanges 50, thereby increasing their traction and affording smooth operating characteristics.

The frame 22 of my roof section is adapted for use with prefabricated building panels of various types for covering the portion extending across the frame, such as translucent sandwich panels of fiber glass reinforced acrylic-polyester sheets permanently bonded under heat and pressure to an aluminum grid core. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, a mounting strip 80 having an outer upturned edge 82 is fixed to the top of each box beam section and extends outwardly beyond its outer sidewall. The extended portion of this mounting strip is connected as by a series of screws 84 to an edge member 86 which is a combination retainer and joint sealer. The upper portion of this latter member has an inwardly directed flange 88 that extends over an edge portion of a panel section 90. By taking up the screws, the flange will grip and seal the edge of the panel section firmly. A lower, downwardly extending flange portion 92 on the edge member overlaps and extends below the extended portion of the mounting strip and thus serves to protect this joint area from penetration by rain. In any movable roof device, according to my invention, one or a plurality of cover panels may be utilized, and of course, the arrangement shown in FIG. 1 is merely illustrative. A plurality of panels can be joined together in any desired spacing by cross frame members 94 which are connected to the edge members 86 in any suitable, well-known manner.

Another feature of the present invention is that the entire drive system for the movable roof section can be enclosed within a hollow section of its frame. Thus, such vital components of the drive system as the motor and gearing are not visible externally and do not present a cluttered look for the roof section. Moreover, these components are well protected from environmental weather conditions, and yet are easily accessible for servicing or repair. As shown in FIG. 2, a combination motor and reduction gear unit 96 is located near one end of a side beam section 26 and is secured to the latters bottom side by a mounting support 98. A sprocket 10 (Ms fixed to the output shaft 102 of the motor gear box 104 and is connected by a chain 106 to another sprocket 108 fixed to the axle 74 for the front drive wheels 24. The electrical power to the drive motor is supplied through a cable 110 which extends from a junction 112 in the fixed inner frame 16 to a spring-loaded, take-up reel 114 fixed to a bracket support 116 on the outside of one side beam section 26. The take-up reel may be of any suitable type which is commercially available and provides an electrical connection to a control box 118 within the side beam section. The latter box is spaced from the motor drive unit and is accessible by a removable cover plate 120 in the side of the beam.

A combined two-way limit switch 122 that controls the drive motor is installed within the side beam section at a convenient location adjacent the control box, and a trip lever 123 for this switch extends downwardly through the bottom of the side beam section so that it will engage and be actuated by either one of a pair of cam members 125 and 126. These cam members are fixed to and extend upwardly from the horizontal flange 52 of the adjacent track member 20 and are located at predetermined positions which will engage the trip lever 123 so as to automatically stop the drive motor when it reaches either the extreme open position or the fully closed position.

The operation and control of my movable roof device may be best understood by reference to the schematic wiring diagram of FIG. 6. Power (110 volts AC) is supplied through one of a pair of leads 130 and 132 to a master control switch 134 having three positions, namely open, close and neutral. A pair of leads 136 and 138 from the open and close position terminal are connected from the switch to the line take-up reel 114 as is the other common power lead 132. From the takeup reel the common power lead is connected through a junction board 140 directly to one terminal of a main motor winding 142 and also one terminal of a motor starter winding 144. The open position lead 136 is connected from the take-up reel through the junction board and the limit switch 122 to a terminal 146 within a motor control relay 148. From the latter terminal the current passes through a relay winding and also through three pairs of contact points 152, 154 and 156 which are closed when the winding is energized. Through the closed contact points current is supplied to both the main motor winding 142 and the motor starter winding 144 thereby energizing the motor in the open direction. When the manual control switch 134 is placed in the closed position a similar series of events takes place, the three other pairs of contact points 158, 160 and 162 being closed by a relay winding to supply current to the main motor winding in a conventional manner, thereby causing the motor to operate in the reverse or closing direction. When energized in either direction the motor provides torque to the axle 74 which simultaneously drives both wheels within the tracks to move the entire device.

All of the wire connections of the junction board and the relay mechanisms are contained within the control box 118 which is mounted within the hollow side frame section of the movable roof device. As the device is moved from one extreme position to another the limit switch is operated by either cam member to provide the proper motor cutoff. The take-up reel constantly keeps the electrical control taut so that no interference with it and the roof structure can occur.

If maintenance is required on either the mechanical or electrical components of the system, all critical elements are easily accessible through a removable panel in the hollow side beam. The circuitry connections for the motor control system are few and easily marked making it easy for one with minimal skill to make either the initial installations or subsequent maintenance or testmg.

From the foregoing it should be apparent that the present invention provides a greatly improved movable roof device that can be manufactured in the form of rel- =atively few parts shipped in knocked down form, and then can be readily assembled with minimal time and labor on the job site. The structural arrangement provides an unusually lightweight, yet a high degree of rigidity, and it can accommodate a wide variety of building cover panels of the type commonly used for skylights and the like.

To those skilled in the art to which this invention relates, many changes in construction and widely differing embodiments and applications of the invention will suggest themselves. The disclosures and the descritpion herein are purely illustrative and are not intended to be in any sense limited.

I claim:

1. A movable roof section for covering an opening in a structure, comprising:

a pair of parallel fixed track means on opposite sides of said openings;

a frame having overall length and width dimensions greater than the roof opening, said frame being comprised of hollow side frame sections and end frame sections connected to said side frame sections at their ends;

a pair of wheels mounted on each of the opposite ends of said frame located within said side frame sections and extending thru the bottom thereof and in guided contact with said track means;

axle means rotatably supported in said side frame sections at one end of said frame, one pair of said wheels being fixed to said axle means;

drive means including an electrical motor and a gear reduction unit mounted within the interior of one of said hollow side frame members;

and means drivingly connecting said drive means to said axle means. i

2. The movable roof section as described in claim 1 wherein said frame includes a downwardly extending side flange means along the outer lower edge of each said hollow side frame section for preventing the influx of rain when said movable section is closed, and flexible strip means on the outer side of each said track means, each said strip means extending upwardly and outwardly and having an edge terminating just below the bottom of a said side frame member and above the lower edge of said side flange means.

3. The movable roof section as described in claim 1 including a manual switch means for remotely controlling said motor to move said roof section in either direction, a limit switch within a side frame section for stopping the motor, a pair of spaced apart cam members fixed adjacent to said movable roof section, and an actuator arm extending from said limit switch through the bottom of a frame section and movable by cam members for automatically stopping said motor when said roof section reaches a fully open or closed position.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,922,410 8/1933 Young 52-66 2,996,161 8/1961 Etling 52475 3,120,574 2/1964 Wesson 52127 X 3,255,563 6/1966 Sauer 52,731 X 3,277,619 10/1966 Miller et a1 52-72 3,294,252 12/1966 Hosoi et al 52-693 X FRANK L. ABBOTT, Primary Examiner PRICE C. FAW, JR., Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 52-403, 475 

